Mamaliga (Polenta)

Some of my favorite mornings growing up were waking up to find freshly made warm mamaliga on the table covered in sizzling butter and salty crumbled brinza cheese... After this hearty, luscious meal, there was no need for lunch or dinner the rest of the day - just perfect! 

Mamaliga is basically very similar to polenta and is a staple of Romanian cuisine, without which no meal can ever be complete. It can be served with just about anything your imagination might concoct! Top it off with cheese, sunny side up eggs, sauted mushrooms, meat, fish - just about anything tastes good with mamliga!

Mastering the preparation of mamaliga takes practice, so don't give up! The key to remember is  you don't need to wait for it to harden completely while in the pot, pour it out on a plate and it'll harden as it cools down and you will get the perfect texture. If you want to get fancy you may also pour it into a receptacle, let it cool, and turn upside down onto a flat plate to get the shape of the receptacle for serving. However usually it's just served quite simply as shown in the picture above. 

INGREDIENTS
 6 cups water

 2 cups cornmeal 

 1.5 tsp salt

The kind I use, easily found in most stores

METHOD

1.       Boil water in a heavy cast iron pot, add salt and cornmeal.

2.       Mix well using wooden spoon and bring to boil again.

3.       Cover, lower the heat to level 2-3 and cook for 10 minutes.

4.       Mix until the consistency becomes more solid and separates from walls.

5.       Turn upside down onto a serving plate and top it off with your topping of choice!